International report: climate change is killing

Climate change is no longer just an ecological threat, but a global public health crisis, reveals a new study published by The Lancet Countdown. According to the report cited by Le Monde, 546,000 people die each year as a result of exposure to heat, a dramatic increase compared to previous decades. In parallel, toxic smoke from forest fires killed a record 154,000 people in 2023 alone. The figures show a steady deterioration in the health of the world's population, especially in regions with weak infrastructure and insufficient adaptation policies. The data analyzed covers the period 2012-2021, showing a doubling of heat-related deaths compared to the 1990s. Rising global temperatures, which in 2024 exceeded the critical threshold of +1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels for the first time, are amplifying heat waves, severe droughts and extreme weather events. "Climate change is destabilizing planetary systems and the environmental conditions on which human life depends,” warns the report, which associates rising temperatures with the spread of respiratory, cardiovascular and mental health diseases. Air pollution from the burning of fossil fuels was responsible for 2.5 million deaths in 2022 alone. Despite calls from the scientific community, governments around the world have continued to subsidize the fossil fuel sector with huge sums: $950 billion by 2023, according to the report, with Russia, Iran, Germany, Saudi Arabia, Japan and China among the largest financiers of polluting fuels. The authors of the study criticize the lack of action by governments and corporations in the energy sector, accusing them of a "systematic regression” in climate commitments. In particular, US President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw the United States from international aid programs and global climate initiatives is described as "a step backwards with ripple effects on the entire international community.” "Reversing these harmful policies and accelerating the transition to clean energy are essential to protecting human health and survival,” says the report, published ahead of the UN COP30 conference, which will take place in Brazil. The document also notes a lack of coordination between health and environmental policies, despite evidence that a just energy transition could save "millions of lives annually.”

Experts warn that the impact of climate change on health is multidimensional: from heat waves and fires that destroy ecosystems, to hunger, forced migration and increased social inequalities. "Climate action is also a public health policy. Every degree of warming means lives lost, hospitals overwhelmed and economies fragile,” explains Dr. Maria Neira, director of the WHO Department of Public Health, quoted by The Guardian. The Lancet Countdown report emphasizes that solutions are still possible: massive investments in clean energy, resilient infrastructure and urban planning adapted to new climate conditions. Successful examples come from countries such as Denmark, Costa Rica and Kenya, where emission reduction policies have been linked to public health and rural development programs. "Ignoring climate change is ignoring human health,” the report says. "We have the resources and the technology, but we have no time to waste.” According to the World Health Organization (WHO), an estimated 250,000 additional deaths annually are expected to be attributed to climate-related health effects between 2030 and 2050 - from malnutrition, malaria, diarrhea, and heat stress. The report, The Health Impacts of Climate Change: Emerging Evidence, states that, under current business-as-usual conditions, up to 83 million people could die from exposure to extreme heat by the end of the century. A report by the World Economic Forum predicted that by 2050, climate change could contribute to 14.5 million additional deaths and $12.5 trillion in economic losses worldwide. Global analyses indicate that health effects account for a significant portion of the total economic losses related to climate change. In the United States, according to a recent NRDC study, the annual health costs caused by fossil fuel pollution and climate change amount to more than $820 billion - from hospitalizations, premature deaths, respiratory diseases, and more. According to another study, adapting the health sector to climate change (investments in harm reduction) could reduce its own costs and impacts on the health system, and the WHO provides an economic tool that compares the cost of health damage with the costs of adaptation. In the report "Valuation and Perception of the Costs of Climate Change on Health”, global economic losses from climate change are estimated at $23 trillion, a significant part of which comes from premature mortality, medical expenses and productivity losses.